PRO FOOTBALL

PRO FOOTBALL; High and Dry in Denver

By BILL PENNINGTON

Published: September 11, 2001

DENVER, Sept. 10—
The Denver Broncos tonight welcomed more than 75,000 of their fans to celebrate the opening of their new football palace, Invesco Field at Mile High. They also welcomed the Giants, an opponent obliged to attend by the National Football League schedule makers.

The Giants were perfect guests as it turned out, obliging in many ways. They fought to spoil the party for a little more than a half, enough to give the event some drama. In the end, however, the Giants did not upset the festive Denver atmosphere as the Broncos christened their noisy new home with a loud and thorough 31-20 rout.

The Giants played the game without their star cornerback, Jason Sehorn, who rested his sore right knee on the sideline. It would prove to be a pivotal absence as Denver's talented receivers embarrassed the Giants secondary with 330 receiving yards and three touchdowns. The Giants' vaunted defense was not much better against the run, giving up 143 yards rushing.

The Giants offense did little to help the team's banged-up defense, mounting few sustained drives. Wide receiver Amani Toomer caught two touchdown passes, but there was no effective rushing game and the Giants had a complete lack of continuity offensively. Quarterback Kerry Collins was frequently under pressure in the pocket and was sacked three times.

Surprisingly, while Giants Coach Jim Fassel expressed his disappointment in the outcome, he was not discouraged.

''Like I told the team after the game, I wanted to win this game badly,'' he said. ''But coming in I knew we were in a bind. It was a tough setting. There were things I wanted to learn about this team. Most of what I found out was positive.''

His players were more downtrodden.

''Everyone talked about the crowd and us being in a bad situation here,'' linebacker Jessie Armstead said. ''But we overcame all that. The game was tied in the third quarter. Then we didn't come through when we were supposed to. We made all kinds of mental mistakes. I did, the front seven did, the defensive backs did. We just didn't do the things we normally do.''

The game's outcome seem to hinge on a gruesome injury to Denver's Pro Bowl wide receiver Ed McCaffrey, who broke his lower left leg early in the third quarter. Toomer's second touchdown catch had just tied the game. On the Broncos' first possession of the second half, McCaffrey caught a 19-yard pass over the middle from Broncos quarterback Brian Griese. The pass was high, and as McCaffrey reached for the ball, Giants free safety Shaun Williams delivered a crushing hit with his shoulder and lower body.

Williams collided with McCaffrey high and low, but it was his upper leg delivering a cross-body block to McCaffrey's lower leg that caused the injury. Television replays showed the leg bending awkwardly as McCaffrey, perhaps Denver's most popular player, fell to the ground. McCaffrey's injury briefly silenced the home crowd and Griese and his teammates appeared slightly stunned. But they suddenly outplayed the Giants for the rest of the game, beginning with an 18-yard run by Terrell Davis just after McCaffrey's final reception. That put the Broncos back in scoring position, and Rod Smith, who caught 9 passes for 115 yards, beat Giants cornerback Dave Thomas in the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown that put Denver ahead, 21-14.

The Broncos had opened the game attacking the Giants' cornerbacks, knowing that there was a lack of experience on one side of the Giants defense and a lack of quickness on the other. The rookie Will Peterson was making his N.F.L. debut in place of Sehorn at right cornerback, and Peterson had trouble keeping up with Smith throughout the game. Meanwhile, the Giants' other cornerback, Thomas, was having his own troubles with the shifty McCaffrey and Smith.

Thomas, in fact, was benched after Smith's third quarter touchdown as the Giants went with two rookie cornerbacks, Peterson and the first-round pick Will Allen.

''I don't think those two young cornerbacks cost us the game,'' Fassel said. ''I think they played well. They were aggressive and did a good job. There was some inexperience there, but they did not back off.''

Of Thomas's benching, Fassel said: ''There were just some general things he was doing and I wanted to play those young guys.''

About a minute before McCaffrey's injury, the Giants had began the third quarter with a spirited drive that tied the game. The key play was a 44-yard pass from Collins, who completed 19 of 34 passes for 258 yards, to Tiki Barber. Then, from the Broncos' 11, Collins fired a square-out to Toomer, who caught the football and danced along the sideline before diving into the end zone for a touchdown.

Denver Coach Mike Shanahan, who had unsuccessfully challenged the previous play -- an incomplete pass to fullback Greg Comella that Denver might have considered a fumble -- also challenged the touchdown. Toomer may have stepped out along the sideline, but the touchdown withstood the challenge.

Toomer and wide receiver Joe Jurevicius each had 5 receptions, but there were few other offensive highlights.

Running back Ron Dayne ran for 30 yards on 6 carries. Barber, playing his first game after sitting out the preseason with a broken hand, looked rusty and gained just 28 yards on 10 carries.

''We played well only in spurts,'' Toomer said. ''You can't get much done that way.''

Fassel agreed.

''We never established anything offensively that they had to stop,'' the coach said. ''We never found a rhythm or any flow.''

Photos: Denver's Ed McCaffrey, hit by Shaun Williams, hit the ground with a broken left leg early in the second half. He still had 6 receptions for 94 yards. (Associated Press)(pg. D4); Rod Smith, who had 9 receptions for 115 yards, made for a rough game for Will Peterson, the Giants' rookie cornerback, and the rest of the Giants secondary. (Brian Bahr/Allsport); Amani Toomer pulling in a 43-yard touchdown pass beyond the Broncos' Kenoy Kennedy in the first half. Toomer also scored on an 11-yard pass in the third quarter. (Associated Press)(pg. D1)